Hair care products specific to the needs of consumers with fine hair have long been commercially available. Shampoos for improving the body of fine hair have been the most widely used of all hair care products. Such shampoos that are common to the marketplace are typically formulated to have pH ranges that are acidic to neutral, for example, about 5.5 to 7.0. Many of the low pH to neutral pH hair shampoos do not provide lasting fullness and body to fine and very fine hair. This may be a consequence of a failure of prior art products to provide a perception of texture to the hair or to remain on the hair shaft after subsequent rinsing and shampooing.
Low pH works to close cuticles that surround the hair shaft. This, in turn, decreases penetration of active ingredients in a product and tends to decrease the diameter of the hair, thus resulting in a decrease in the perception of body and fullness of the hair.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,240,450; 4,445,521; 4,719,099 and 5,009,880 to J.-F. Grollier et al. disclose anchoring of anionic polymers to keratin material by means of a cationic polymer, via an interaction (i.e., complexation) between the two types of polymers. The Grollier et al. patents do not disclose or teach high pH and rapid deposition of polymer. The patents disclose that the substantivity of the anionic polymer is improved by its interaction with cationic polymer.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,847,076 to V. M. Deshpande et al. discloses compositions and methods for enhancing the body of hair in which harsh reducing agents, i.e., alkali metal or ammonium bisulfites, are required. The disclosed compositions require contact with hair for about 20 to 30 minutes prior to rinsing from the hair.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,352,389 to G. Gazzani discloses aqueous compositions for cleaning hair, skin and scalp. The disclosed compositions include surfactants and lipases to increase their cleaning efficacy. No polymers are included in the compositions, which are not contemplated for improving or providing long-lasting fullness and body.
H. Edelstein, "Hair Conditioners and Conditioning", Cosmetics and Toiletries, Vol. 100 (4):31-36, April 1985, discloses that cationic substances having a strong positive charge are attracted to the hair at pH above 3.8. However, there is no recognition that a cationic polymer in a composition at a pH from about 8 to about 10, or a nonionic polymer in a composition at a pH of from about 8 to about 14, results in an increased perception of texture, body and fullness to the hair by the user.
The present invention addresses the need in the art for improved shampoos and hair care products designed to increase fullness and body to hair, particularly fine and very fine hair. The present invention provides novel alkaline compositions and formulations, which combine a higher pH, i.e., about 8 to 8.5 and above, with cationic and/or nonionic polymers, to create products that provide, in a surprisingly short time, a perception of texture to the hair and impart long-lasting fullness and body to users with fine to very fine hair. The terms "high pH" and "high or highly alkaline" are used interchangeably herein.